Reed



May 18, 1943 REED Filed Aug. 4, 1941 2%2 06/2 AYE e 05 622 cf 1 zzoas if ff s. LUCAS 2,319,419

Patented May 18, 1943 REED Stephen J. Lucas, 'Ghicagmill.

Application August 4, 1941, Serial No. 405,389

2 Claims.

This invention relates to reeds for wood-wind musical instruments and deals particularly with a new and improved reed of diiferent and improved shape from those known in the prior art.

One of the principal objects of this invention is to provide a reed of such design that a standard size reed will include a longer vibrating edge than those heretofore used, with the result that instruments using such a reed may produce better tone and more volume.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a reed in which the side edges of the reed, as well as the end edge, are capable of vibratory movement. Such construction gives more control, permits of longer sustained tone, and makes possible the use of one standard design of reed for each type of musical instrument, irrespective of possible Variations in the length of wind opening in the mouthpiece of the individual instrument.

A further object of the invention is to provide a reed having three vibrating edges with a relatively rigid central heart portion extending into the tongue of the reed to provide adequate support for these edges.

Further objects will appear hereinafter.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing in which a saxophone reed has been shown as illustrative of the present invention:

Fig. l is a bottom plan view of a reed constructed in accordance with the principles of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the reed illustrated in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken substantially on the plane of the line 33 in Fig. 1.

The reed illustrated in the drawing comprises in general a body portion ill and a tongue portion H. These are preferably formed integrally with each other and may be of any of the materials customarily used in the art in the manufacture of reeds of this character, as, for example, wood or any one of the several plastics now commonly used.

The body portion ID by which the reed may be clamped to the mouthpiece of a musical instru ment, is of comparatively great thickness and rigidity, as compared to the tongue portion 1 l in order that it may support the tongue portion H in proper position with respect to the wind open ing in the mouthpiece. As will be seen from an examination of Fig. l, the body ID of the reed includes a heart portion 12 extending into the tongue H in an acute V-shaped point defined by the two abrupt angular offset lines l3 and I4 extending diagonally inwardly from the points [5 and 15, respectively, to a vertex at the point l1 located on the longitudinal center line of the reed. This entire heart portion is relatively thick and of comparatively great rigidity in order to give sufficient support to the thin vibrating edges of the tongue surface.

In this connection it will be noted that the tongue surface I! tapers downwardly from the angular offset 13 to a thin vibrating edge I8 along one side of the reed, while at the opposite side of the reed, the tongue ll includes a similar but opposite taper between the angular offset I l and the side vibrating edge 19. These thin side edges l8 and I9 extend between the curved end edge 2! of the reed and the points I5 and I8, and thus, in effect, form one continuous three-sided vibrating edge extending around the three sides of the tongue portion ll. It will be noted, of course, that the tongue portion l l is tapered not only on each of its sides, but is also tapered between the point i! and the curved end edge 2 I.

In operation the heart portion l2 of the reed provides a suitable reinforcement and support for the tongue 9 I and thus permits the three vibrating edges I8, l9 and 2! to be formed sufficiently thin to properly perform their function without the sacrifice oi the necessary structural strength in the reed. This construction improves the tone and volume of the musical instrument in that it permits vibration of the side edges of the reed. which in the prior art structures known to the applicant, have been formed of relatively heavy non-functioning walls. The flexibility of the side edges of the reed of the present design also pro vides greater tone control and ease of tonguing. which will permit the entire reed, not under pressure of the ligatures, to vibrate and thus utilize the full tone producing possibilities of the three sides of the mouthpiece opening. This feature, of course, also permit one design of reed to be used in connection with mouthpieces having varying lengths of wind openings, since the thin side edges 18 and 19 will be at least co-extensive with the maximum length of mouthpiece openings. It will also be appreciated that the ease of tonguing of the present design of reed will permit a musician to maintain a longer sustained tone with the same amount of air used on reeds known in the prior art.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of the invention in accordance with the patent statutes, the scope of the invention should not be limited to the precise dimensions illustrated in the drawing, but should be determined by the language of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A wood-wind reed comprising an elongated body portion and a vibrating tongue portion, said tongue portion having a heart extending lengthwise of the center thereof from the body portion, said heart being relatively thicker and more rigid than the tongue portion and having opposite side edges converging to an apex at the end of said heart extending toward the free end of the vibrating tongue portion, said vibrating tongue portion having the side portions of the top surface thereof on opposite sides of said heart tapering downwardly from said heart to thin opposite edges.

2. A wood-wind reed comprising an elongated heart toward the free end of the vibrating tongue portion, said vibrating tongue having the side portions of the top surface thereof on opposite sides of said heart tapering downwardly from said grooves to thin opposite edges and said tongue portion tapering lengthwise to a thin end edge.

STEPHEN J. LUCAS. 

